TRYING TO BE AN ARTIST IN THIS "DIGITAL' WORLD"

portraitartist45 wrote

on 12 Dec 2009 6:08 AM

MY BACKGROUND: B.A. DEGREE IN STUDIO ART (SUNY) '87, BACK SURGERY IN '93, PROBATIONARY AD DESIGNER '95, ODDS & ENDS JOBS '96 TO PRESENT.

SITUATION: WITH MY DISABILITY (PHYSICAL) I UN-"ABLE" TO ACQUIRE A NORMAL JOB. SO I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO UPDATE MY COMPUTER GRAPHIC KNOWLEDGE BUT - EMPLOYERS DON'T JUST WANT SOMEONE WITH KNOWLEDGE THEY WANT "YEARS,,, OF EXPERIENCE" BUT STILL MY "CONDITION" STILL MAKES THEM HESITATE!-ON-THE-JOB LIABILITY!

SO, HERE'S MY QUESTION : IS THERE A "NICHE" OUT THERE FOR AN ARTIST THAT HAS SOME SKILL AND TALENT IN PAINTING PORTRAITS AND WILDLIFE?? BECAUSE I BELIEVE MY REASON FOR BEING ON THIS EARTH IS TO PAINT LIFE AND THE LIVING.NOT TO BE A NORMAL INDIVIDUAL WORKING AT A NORMAL 9 TO 5 JOB. EXAMPLE: MY INHERITED BACK CONDITION.

I WOULD APPRECIATE THE VIEWS OF WORKING ARTISTS, THANK YOU.

patrickart wrote

on 14 Dec 2009 4:46 PM

i say if you can paint, do it ! who cares if anyone likes it. what matters is if it makes you happy.

Kisu wrote

on 15 Dec 2009 12:17 PM

You can generate income by doing portraits, it really depends on how much work you are willing/able to do.  I've found that word of mouth brings a lot of portrait business in, so all it really takes is to do a portrait for someone and then the word spreads, and you'll likely find that people will be calling you for commissions.  I think you'll find the answer to your questions by just getting started and actually doing a few portraits for friends and family.  Good luck!

LeeBarish wrote

on 31 Dec 2009 8:39 AM

First, stop typing all caps.

The Dolly Yamma wrote

on 10 Jan 2010 3:24 PM

Success depends on many factors, but it's entirely possible to succeed in your desire. You might want to consider expanding your potential customers by giving classes in portraiture or animal painting, if you are comfortable with it. Added income and increased contacts. Good luck!

juliek41 wrote

on 10 Jan 2010 4:10 PM

Have you tried placing an ad in your local paper? I did that after college. I offered the service of portraits from photos and did receive many calls. Some were merely just asking questions but some also led to me doing more than one piece of artwork for the same person. If you are not able to go to their home, perhaps they would be willing to mail you reference photographs to work from? Or you could email examples of your work and they could email you back photos for you to work from perhaps? You should create a website offering these services. Many people are busy and you offering this service could be appealing to us "9 to 5" people!

YSokolov wrote

on 18 Jan 2010 11:33 AM

Great point Kisu!

I work as an Art teacher at High School, the job does not pay that much :( However, I do have a lot of portrait commissions, most of them are smaller drawing that do not pay a lot per each, but when someone orders about 6-10 in a month it adds up as a good extra income.

Mingle, get your name out there and get your friends to tell other friends what a great portrait painter/artist you are, and when your name gets out - then the business will start rolling in.

YVS